Pressure line gauge device



Oct. 12, 1937. w. H. LONGST REET 2,095,365

PRESSURE LINE GUAGE DEVICE Original. Filed Nov. 26, 1935 3 Sheets-Sheet1 Oct. 12, 1937. w. H. LONGSTREET 9 PRESSURE LINE GUAGE DEVICE OriginalFiled Nov. 26, 1935 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Oct. 12, 1937. w, LQNGST'REET I2,095,365

PRESSURE LINE GUAGE DEVICE Original Filed Nov. 26, 1935 3 Sheets-Sheet 3a 2 56 97 m a 96 i7 4 A? 4 .9? if Patented Oct. 12, 1937 a PATENT OFFICEPRESSURE LINE GAUGE DEVICE Walter H. Longstreet, Brooklyn, N. Y.,assignor to y Acme Air Appliance Company; Inc., Brooklyn,

N. Y., a corporation of New York Original a plication November 26,1935,erials... 7

51.676. 1936, Serial No. 89,232

Divided and this application July 6,

7 Claims (01. 73-111) This invention relates to pressure line gaugedevices foruse in inflating and deflating automobile tires and the like,the application consti tuting a division of my co-pendingrcase for Air 5inflation andgauge devices filed November 26.

1935, Ser-ial No; 51,676.

- The object of the invention is to provide a tire gauge primarilyintended for use in automobile service stations for testing andinflating vehicle tires.

Another object is the provision of an extremely accurate tire gaugewhich is automatically operable for use in testing and the inflation ofboth highpressure and low pressure vehicle tires and is readily usableby the average public, simple, compact, light in weight and inexpensiveto manuiacture, while well designed to stand the abuse to which thesedevices aresubject in use.

A further object is the provision of a tire gauge in which the'tirepressure may be readilyin'dicated without the removal of the gauge fromthe tire. and should the tire pressure be excessive the tire may bereadily deflated to the desired pressure as indicated by the gauge. 7

A still further object isthe provision in a tire gauge of a simplemovable indicator member havinglow pressure indicia thereon for use withlow pressure. tires,saidindicator also having high pressure tire'indiciafor use with high pressuretires and means for automatically controllingthe indicator according to the said pressures to be dealt with.

It is also an objective to provide a manually I controllable valve meansfor causing the tire pressure to operate the indicator'member and also,when'desire'd, to deflate or inflate the tire being tested.

A still further object is to provide means for guiding the indicatormember' employed in the 40 gauge so as to have a knife edge or linecontact whereby the friction of the moving parts will be reduced to aminimum. i

Another object in View is the provision of means wherebythe servicepressure from the particular air reservoir or pump maylreadily beindicated on the gauge and means by which the operable condition of thepumping means usually remotely located may be determined. a A stillfurther specific object is the provision of a tire gauge having a mainindicator means tensioned for low pressure tire. gauging and asupplemental tensioning means successively operable in conjunction withthe main tensioning means for high pressure tire gauging together. witha single indicator having high and low pressure indication thereon, theindicator having a piston member operable by said pressures foractuating the indicator against the resistance offered by the main andsecondary tensioning means together with safety stop means for the 5piston to prevent overloading of the springs.

A further object is the provision of a pressure fluid supply gauge fortires having a pressure operated indicator device, an inlet passage foradmitting the pressure fluid to the gauge and a 10 fluid pressure outletconduit for discharging the fluid to the tire and valve means forestablishing communication between the inlet and outlet conduits and asecond control means for establishing communication between the outletand the pres- 15 sure operated indicating device.

1 Another object isthe provision of -a tire gauge and inflatingdeviceflhaving a pressure operated indicator, an outletfor'connectionwith atire, an inlet for connection with the source ofpressure, 20 valve means for connecting the inlet passage directly withthe outlet passagaand supplemental valve means connecting the outletpassage with the indicator member, saidsupplemental means being alsomovable to'connect the: outlet with the '25 atmosphere.-

Other and further objects of the invention will be hereinafterset forthand the novel features thereof defined by the appended claims.

Referring to the drawings, in which like refer- 3 ence characters refertolike parts, Figure 1 is a side elevation of my improved tire inflationgauge with supply line to the pressure reservoir, and the line .orconduit to'the tire inflation-chuck being broken away. H I t Figure 2 isa top plan view of the parts seen in Figure 1. j Figure 3 is a verticallongitudinal sectional view taken through my improved device.

Figure 4 is a longitudinal horizontal section 0 taken on the line 4-4 ofFigure 3.

Figure 5 is a vertical transverse sectional view on line 5-5 of Figure 4looking in the direction of the arrows. T V

Figure 6 is a detail elevation of the gauge piston and guide rod. 7

Figure '7 is a plan view of the pressure indicator member. 7

Figure 8 is a longitudinal sectional view through the auxiliary or highpressure spring carrier. a Figure 9 is a fragmentary verticallongitudinal sectional view of the lefthand upper portion of Figure 3showing the parts in their maximum pressure-indicating position. I

Figure 1-9 is a fragmentary View taken on the 55 same plane as Figure 9,but showing a modified embodiment in which a third or service pressureauxiliary spring is used.

Figure 11 is a plan view on a slightly reduced scale of the indicatorfor use with the construction shown in Figure and clearly disclosing theindicia arrangement thereon.

Referring particularly to Figures 3, 4 and 5, my improved tire inflationgauge comprises a body or casing I having a longitudinal bore 2extending inwardly from one end of the body. This bore is enlarged at 3for a purposelater to be described. A plunger cylinder 4 is securelyheld in place within the bore 2 by the threaded plug 5 which is tightlyscrewed against the end of the cylinder 4. r

The periphery of the plug '5 is provided with a notch 6 while thecentral portion is provided with an air inlet aperture I to admit airinto one end of the cylinder 4. A closure plug 8 is threaded into theend of the bore 3 to seal the same against the gasket member 9, therebeing a felt or other suitable filtering washer Illdisposed between thethreaded plug 5=and the closure plug 8.

Reciprocally mounted within the cylinder 4 is the pressure operatedpiston member II having secured thereto the guide or plunger rod I2.Opposing the movement of the piston member II is the low pressure orprimary tensioning means or spring I3 which normally maintains thepiston member II in engagement with the tapered end 5' of the plug 5.The other end of the spring rests against the boss or partition I lvwhich is also apertured to form a guide for the piston rod I2.

The upper portion of the partition or boss I4 is formed with a curvedslot I5. to receive the outer end of the indicator member I6, saidindicator member being formed of a sheet of flat material curvedlongitudinally, as seen in Figure '7, and having one end bent downwardlyand apertured to fit on the piston rod I2, the spring I3-securelyholding the apertured end of the indicator member against the piston II.

As seen in Figure 5, the edges of the indicator A sight opening I! isformed in the body I directly over the indicator member I6, as clearlyseen in Figure 3 of the drawings. The sight opening comprises adownwardly and outwardly tapering aperture I8 having an indiciaretaining rim or flange I9 upon which is disposed the ring member havingthe indicator arrows 2 I. Glass 22 is retained tightly against the ring20 by the locking ring 23 due to its expansion against the tapering wallof the recess.

The guide or piston rod I2 projects slightly beyond the boss orpartition I4 into the auxiliary spring chamber 24 which is suitablyclosed by the threaded plug 25, said plug having a small relief opening26.

The auxiliary or supplemental spring carrier 21 comprises a sleevemember of slightly larger internal diameter than that of the piston rodI2, so that it may freely slide thereinto, the end of the sleeve memberbeing flanged at 28 for engagement with the auxiliary spring orsecondary tensioning means 29.

The opposite end of the sleeve member is closed at 30 with the exceptionof the bleed opening 3| so as to provide an escape for any air thatshould be trapped in the sleeve member as the piston rod moves towardthe closed end. It should be here observed that the piston rod I2 willmove a predetermined distance before it strikes the closed end 30 of theauxiliary spring carrier, whereupon the resistance to movement of theauxiliary spring must be overcome in addition to that of the main or lowpressure tensioning means I3, this aux iliary tensioning means beinghereafter referred to as the high pressure tensioning means.

The length of the sleeve member 21 being slightly greater than themaximum compression length of the high pressure spring 29, it will beobserved that the closed end 36 will strike the inner end of the plugmember 25 and thus prevent distortion or damage to this spring shouldexcessive pressure be applied to the piston member II. Likewise thedegree of movement of the piston rod I2 before it shifts the sleevemember 21 against the plug 25 is less than the maximum compression ofthe low pressure tensioning spring I3 and thus this spring cannot becompressed to a degree whereby it may be damaged.

Longitudinally formed within the body I below the plunger cylinder 4 isthe fluid pressure inlet chamber 32'while at the opposite end of thegauge below the high pressure spring chamber is the outlet chamber 33.The inlet chamber 32 is designed to be connected to any suitable airpump or pressure supply by the conduit 2, this construction forming noparticular part of my invention, only the extreme end of the hose andits attaching nipple being shown in Figure I of the drawings.

The outlet conduit 33 is threaded at 34 to receive the threaded end ofthe flexible connection 35 which is provided with the usual tireinflation chuck.

Referring now to Figures 1, 2, 4 and 5, the body I is providedintermediate its length and at either side of the bore 2 with valvechambers 36, 31. The valve chamber 36 has disposed therein the gaugecontrol valve 36 which performs two functions. When partly depressed, itallows pressure from the tire being inflated or tested to escape toatmosphere. When fully depressed, the tire pressure is allowed to enterthe cylinder 4 and move the piston member against the tension of thesprings I3 and 29.

The chamber 31 has disposed therein the air control valve 31, this Valvebeing primarily for the purpose of admitting air to the tire beinginflated. The valve chambers 36 and 31 are somewhat similar inconstruction with the exception of the location of the passages leadingtherefrom, and each comprises an upperchamber 38, 38a and a lowerchamber 39, 39a, the

lower chambers being closed by the threaded plugs 40, 400., while theupper chambers are closed by the thread shanks M, 42 of the valve units,each readily replaceable fully assembled.

A shoulder 43, 43a is formed in each of the valve chambers between theupper and lower portions thereof to receive the sealing gaskets 44against which the flanged end of the valve unit bodies 4! and 42 areforced. The inner end of the outlet chamber 33 has a conduit 45 leadingtherefrom to the lower portion 39a of the gauge valve chamber 36. Asimilar passage or conduit upper portion 38 of the air valve'chamber3l.

' 5| of the body, the lower end of the body being a )Ih'e air inletchamber-'32 is-provided ;with' a passage 41 at its inner end whichestablishes communication between the chamberand the lower nd orportion'39 of the air valve chamber 31 A fourth conduitor passageestablishes communication between the upper portion-"38a of the gaugevalve cham'berl36 and a space3w'between the enlarged borer3 and thecylinder 4.

The air valve unit comprises the threaded plug or body 4| which isreduced intermediate its length to provide-an annular passage 49 aroundthe upper portion 38 of the airvalveichamber. Openings 50 are formedinrthe base ofthispassage to establish communlcationto the inner boretapered "to provide a valve seat '52 for the air valve '31 this 'valvebeing normally forced upwardly against the seat by the" compressionspring 53 seated in the depression of-the threaded Dlug 40 .To preventleakage between the stem of theair valve-31 and the plug 4l,aspring-pressed gasket or sealing member 54 is provided as shown inFigure 5 the spring forcing the gasket intosealing contact between thestem and the plug, being of comparatively" light tension andindicated at55 in this figure of the drawings.

In the use of thegauge for'inflation purposes only, airunder pressureisgadmitted to the inlet chamber 32 and throughthe passage leadingtherefrom into the lower portion 39 of the air valve chamber. i a

' Upon depression of the air Valve 31', the valve member on" the stem isunseated from thei seat 52 permitting air toficwupwardly through thecentral bore, out through theo'penings5 into the 6 upper portion -38'ofthe chamber 3'|.- From here air flows through the passage 46 downwardlyinto usual manner. 2 l

The gauge valve unit 36 is quite: similar to the air valve unit withexception that the gasket or sealing member is omitted. The plug 42 isalso provided with an annular chamber 49a having ports 500, leadingtherefrom into the inner bore la, the lower portion of the plug or body42 being formed with a tapered extension forming a valve seat52alad'apted to cooperatewith the valve member carried by the stem ofthe gauge'valve 36. I 7 7 s A compression spring 53a is provided for'fo'rcing the valve member against its seat 52a. The under face of thegaugevalve finger button mem ber 36"--is.provided with an annular recessin which is disposed a sealing'gasket 56 adapted upon depression of thebutton to engage with an annular lip or seat 51 formed on the top of theplug 42 and surrounding the stem of the valve. The valve stem' of thegauge is also preferably notched or flattened on either side toprovide'an the outlet chamber 33 and into the tire in the air escapepassage 58 for the purposeof permit- 'ber 36' closed, as seen in Figure5, ythe tire pressure gauge is in'inoperative position or at rest, asseen in Figure 3 of the drawings, with the piston and plunger memberinits extreme righthand position. When 'it 'is' desired to take a readingwith the gauge, assuming that the tire tap is connected with the valveof the tire to be tested, the operator then fully depresses the buttononthe upper end of the gauge valve '3B.

Under these conditions, air from the tire will flow 1 '48which leads tothe enlarged chamber around the cylinderd. (See also Figure 4.) 7

From this point air'passes between the cylin der and the bore toward theouter end thereof and through thenotch 6 inrthe plug- 5, thencethroughthe felt washer I0 and through the aperture l in the plug 5 tothe interior of the cylinder 4.

As pressure is built up in this cylinder, tension of the spring I3 isovercomecausing the piston or plunger member .II to be forced to theleft. The indicator member I6 is moved along under the sight opening ['1through which the operator may note the indicia carried by the indicatorand its relation to the pointer or arrow members 2 I The initialmovement of this plunger, being resisted by the main or low pressurespring i3, is greater than the final movement of the plunger afterit'engage's and picks up the spring carrier or sleeve connecting member21 and therefore this low resistance, so to speak, produces a greatermovement of the indicatorand-therefore the graduations from ten toforty, 16a of Figure 7, are farther'apart than the graduations I61) andare primarily used in conjunction with low pressure or balloon typetires.

Assuming that a :high pressure the is being tested, theplunger memberwillbe forced to the left sufiicientlyto cause the piston or'rod memberI2 to engagethe end of the spring carrier 29, so to speak, and thisspring being tensioned in conjunction-with'the mainor primary spring l3causes a relatively reduced movement of the indicator member per poundpressure applied on the gauge as the pressure changes.

When a tire is being tested and the operator finds that the pressure inthe tireis above the desired amount, he has only to slightly relieve thepressure on the buttonof the valve 36' permitting the same to moveupward sufliciently to'permit the seat 51 to disengage the gasket 56 inthe under. surface of the button. Under these conditions, pressure fromthe tire will flow from the inlet chamber 33through.the passage andlower portion 39a of the gauge valve chamber upwardly thr'oughthe innerbore 5laxandescape between the flat surface of the valve stemand theannular valve stem guide bore in the plug 42.

When it is desired to take a reading of the service pressure or pressureof the airof. the supply reservoir to which-the gauge is connected, the

the air supply valve 31 pressure will be admitted through the passage 45into the outlet chamber 33. This outlet chamber is'usually provided withaflexible conduit to the end of which is secured a tire valve chuck ortap, as before set forth.

This tap is provided with a check valve sothat,

upon removal or the tap from the tire valve, the check valve will close.This structure is conventional and therefore not disclosed in thedrawings. It is necessary, however, to mention it here in order to statethat pressure will be built up within the outlet chamber 33 upondepression of the airvalve. 31.

Since we have assumed that the gauge valve is depressed as well as theair valve in order to determine service line pressure on the indicator,the service or line pressure in the outlet chamber 33 will be effectiveon the piston member l l in exactly the same manner as when the buttonof the valve 36 is depressed to indicate tire pressure, except that dueto the higher service pressure the indicator will be moved to a greaterextent. If the service or line pressure is excessive, I provide a safetystop means for the main pis-. ton or plunger rod II and the auxiliaryspring carrier or socket member 21, as previously set forth.

Referring now particularly to Figure 9 of the drawings, which shows theplunger rod [2 and the auxiliary spring carrier in their extrememovements as would be the case if excessive pressure was applied to thegauge, it should be observed that the end of the socket member 21engages the inner face of the plug 25 before the auxiliary spring 29 iscompressed solid, and, under these conditions, further compression ofthe spring is impossible.

The plunger rod I2 is likewise limited in its movement by the inner orclosed end of the carrier 2'! before the primary or low pressure testingspring 13 is compressed solid, and, therefore, this spring cannot bedamaged and, therefore, neither of these springs can be damaged ifexcessive pressure is applied to the gauge.

The gauge will show pressure up to the limit of the indications which inthe preferred form of my embodiment is 130 pounds. If the pressure wasabove that no harm would be done, although the gauge would show thatthere was at least 130 pounds of pressure in the system.

Referring to Figures 10 and 11 of the drawings, I disclose a slightmodification of my invention in which a service pressure tensioningspring is provided as indicated, the supplemental auxiliary spring 59being carried on an inwardly extending tubular extension or boss 60formed on the inner face of the threaded plug 25, the length of thisboss being sufiicient to be engaged by the end of the socket member orspring carrier 21 when the spring 59 is fully compressed therebylimiting the movement of the piston rod [2 and at the same timepreventing excessive compression or rupture of the spring 59 in thisform of invention. The indicator member I6 will be provided with threesets of pressure value indicia, as indicated at l6c, lfid and lfie,indicia I60 and Kid being spaced substantially the same as the indiciaIlia and I61) in the previous embodiment. Indicia I56, however, isprimarily for the purpose of indicating the line or service pressuresand represents the pressure necessary to move the piston when it isresisted by all three springs or tensioning means I3, 29 and 59.

Suitable cup-shaped screens or dust guards are provided at 61 and 62,the dust guard 6i being disposed in theforward portion of the air outletpassage to prevent dust or foreign matterfrom entering the gauge whenthe gauge valve 36 is depressed and the gauge attached to a tire forindicating the pressure or partial deflation thereof. The strainermember 62 is disposed in the end of the inlet passage to prevent foreignmatter from entering the gauge from the pressure reservoir or source ofair supply.

While I have described my invention herein as applicable particularly tothe inflation of vehicle tires, it is quite obvious that its utility isnot restricted to this special field, as it may be used in conjunctionwith any inflation operation where it is desired to obtain a quick andsturdy control and an accurate gauging of pressures of varying extent.It will also be apparent that slight changes may be made in the detailsof construction of the device Without departing from the spirit of theinvention and within the scope of the claims hereto appended.

I claim:

1. In a pressure gauge device, a casing having intake and outletpassages, a gauge chamber communicating with said passages and having aspring abutment at one end, a fixed abutment arranged intermediate thelength of the gauge chamber, a pressure-actuated member mounted in saidchamber at one side of the fixed abutment, tensioning means coactingwith the pressure-actuated member at one end and with the fixed abutmentat one side at its other end to resist movement of said member, a secondtenioning means in the chamber at the other side of the fixed abutmentbetween said abutment and the spring abutment, means on saidpressureactuated member for cooperation with the second tensioning meansto render the latter eifective with the first-tensioning means toincrease the resistance to movement of the pressure-actuated member anda'pressure indicating member operable by said pressure actuated member;

2. In a pressure gauge device, a casing having intake and outletpassages, a gauge chamber communicating with said passages, a guide bossar ranged in said chamber intermediate its length, a plunger mounted insaid chamber at one side of said boss and having means coacting with theboss to guide the plunger in reciprocation thereof, a spring at one sideof said boss to resist movement of the plunger, a second spring in thechamber at the other side of the boss, means coacting with the secondspring and arranged in the path of movement of the guide means on theplunger whereby to render the second spring effective upon impingementby said guide means to additionally resist movement of the plungerduring part of its travel and a pressure indicating member operable bysaid plunger.

3. In a pressure gauge device, a casing having inlet and outletpassages, a gauge chamber communicating with said passages and having asight opening, an apertured boss arranged intermediate the length ofsaid chamber, a pressure-actuated plunger mounted in said chamber at oneside of said boss and having a guide rod extending therefrom and throughthe aperture of said boss for guiding the travel of the plunger and alsohaving a pressure indicating member carried thereby and movable acrosssaid opening, a spring surrounding the rod and bearing at one endagainst the plunger and atits other end against the boss, a secondspring mounted in the chamber at the other side of the boss from thefirst-mentioned spring, and a sleeve socket coacting with the saidsecond-mentioned spring and adapted to receive the plunger rod when saidrod has moved a predetermined distance to thereby further resist themovement of the plunger additionally to the resistance of thefirst-mentioned spring.

4. In a pressure gauge device, a casing having I in said chamber atoneside of said bore and havinga guide rod extending therefrom and throughthe aperture of said-boss for guiding the travel of the plunger, aspring surrounding the rod and bearing at one end against the plungerand at its other end against the boss, a second spring mounted in thechamber at the other side of the boss from the first-mentioned spring, asleeve socket coacting with the said'second-mentioned spring andadapted. to receive the plunger rod when said rod has moved apredetermined dis tance to thereby further resist the movement of theplunger additionally to the resistance of the first-mentioned spring,and a pressure indicator member carried by the plunger for movementtherewith past an indicating point on the casing, said boss constitutinga guide for guiding the indicator member in the movements thereof.

5. In a pressure .gauge device, a casing having an air inlet passage andan air outlet passage, said casing having a bore extendinglongitudinally thereof and a sight opening formed therein, a pressurecylinder disposed within said bore in spaced relation thereto, anapertured closure plug for securing the cylinder within said bore topermit pressure fluid to pass from the space between said cylinder andthe bore to the interior of the cylinder, a filter disk mounted adjacentone-face of the apertured plug to filter the pressure fluid passingbetween the interior of the cylinder and the aforementioned space, aclosure plug for closing the end of the bore, ,a pressureoperatedplunger movable within said cylinder, a tensioning spring for resistingmovement of said plunger, a guide rod connected to said plunger forresisting lateral movement of said spring, an indicator member 'carriedby said plunger in registration with said sight opening and extendingpartly around said guide rod and spring in spaced relation to the springand interior of said cylinder, and guidemeans on the casing forreceiving said guide rod and said indicator to maintain the same inpredetermined'spaced relation.

6. In a pressure gauge device,.a casing having an air inlet passage andan air outlet passage, said casing having a bore extendinglongitudinally thereof and having'an indicator sight opening therein, apressure cylinder disposed within said bore in spaced relationthereto,,an apertured closure plug for securing the cylinder within saidbore to permit pressure fluid to pass from the space between saidcylinder and the bore to the interior of the cylinder, a closure plugfor closing the end of the bore, a pressure-operated plunger 7 movablewithin said cylinder, a tensioning spring rod for resisting lateralmovement of said spring, an indicator member carried by said plunger andextending partly around said guide rod and spring in spaced relation tothe spring and interior of said cylinder and adapted to move across saidsight opening, guide'means on the casing for receiving said guide rodand said indicator to maintain the same in predetermined spacedrelation, and means for establishing communication between the inletpassage and the outlet passage and between the outlet passage and saidspace.

'7. In a pressure gauge device, a casing having -.an air inlet passageand an air outlet passage,

said casing having a bore extending longitudinal- 1y thereof and anindicator sight opening therein,

a pressure cylinder disposed Within said bore in for resisting movementof said plunger, a guide spaced relation thereto, an apertured closureplug for securing the cylinder within said bore between said cylinderand the bore to the interior of the cylinder, a closure plug for closingthe end 'of the bore, a pressure-operated plunger movable within saidcylinder, 2. tensioning spring for resisting movement of said plunger, aguide rod for resisting lateral movement of said spring, anindicator'member carried by said plunger and extending partly aroundsaid guide rod and spring in spaced'relation to the spring'and interiorof said cylinder and movable across said sight opening, guide means onthe casing for receiving said guide rod and said indicator to maintainthe same in predetermined spaced relation, a supplemental tensioningmeans disposed between the guide means and the other end'of the borecomprising a socket member, and a spring surrounding said socket memberto resist movement of the same, said socket member being positioned overthe end of the guide rod to telescope the same and subsequently beactuated by said guide rod to cause said tensioning means to resistmovement of the plunger.

' WALTER H. LONGS'I'REET.

'to permit pressure fluid to pass from the space

